Spaghetti Casserole

Mmm mmm. Tonight I decided I wanted some comfort food. Last night my roomie made spaghetti and it smelled SO good. I hadn't had spaghetti in ages. So today on my way home from work I decided that's what I wanted to have. I made a pit stop at the grocery store and bought all the stuff. But I decided to put a little spin on it and make a casserole. So along with all the spaghetti "stuff", I got some Panko (Japanese bread crumbs). Well I've never made anything with bread crumbs nor have I ever really warmed up any bread in my oven. So I don't really know how to use the...ahem...broiler.

Needless to say, after 15 minutes on bake, the bread crumbs still weren't getting brown. So my roomie suggested I turn on the broiler for about 6 minutes. So I did. But my oven has a "HI" temp and a "LOW" temp for the broiler. I didn't ask which one to use. Just flipped it on (HI) and kept it at the minutes the timer was already on, which was 4. BIG mistake. When the timer went off, my spaghetti casserole was nice and black on top. LOL. So we scraped off most of the top layer and what do you know? It was STILL fabulous! Next time I'll know to cook it on "LOW" for about 5 minutes. And I will be making this again because it was so freaking good.

I would have taken a picture but...well you know....the black didn't look very appetizing, even though it was. I'll take a picture the next time.

Here's the recipe:

1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 cup of red onions, chopped however you like
1 small red bell pepper, chopped however you like (I kind of like my veggies chunky)
1 15oz can of diced tomatoes
3 or 4 garlic cloves (diced)
Oregano to taste
Basil to taste
Parsley to taste
Salt & pepper to taste
1 pkg whole wheat noodles

Pre heat the oven to 350. In a non-stick pan, sautee the onions and garlic until onions are translucent. Add in the red peppers, sauce, tomatoes, salt and pepper and spices. Let this simmer on low heat while the noodles are cooking. Cook the noodles until ALMOST al dente. Once the noodles are ready, strain and pour into an 8x8 casserole dish. Pour in the tomato sauce mixture. Then sprinkle the panko on top, covering the entire dish. Cover with foil and cook for 10 minutes in the oven. Then uncover and broil ON LOW(!) for about 4 or 5 minutes. You may just want to keep an eye on it. :) Serve and enjoy! It's probably going to be even better tomorrow for lunch!

My $150 Butternut Squash Soup

It's been one of those days that I love...Sunday, rainy, cool...ALMOST October. I can't wait for Fall if you can't tell. I woke up this morning and saw that it was supposed to start storming around noon. I wanted to make some soup for lunch. It was a Barefoot Contessa recipe that sounded delicious. So I dragged my roomie out to the grocery store because we both needed to go. I wanted to get home before the rain started.


I LOVE SOUP. I eat it probably four out of seven days when it's cold out. So when I saw the Barefoot Contessa episode with Butternut Squash soup I knew I had to try it. The pic above is of the veggies roasting.

Now let me explain why the title of this blog is "My $150 Butternut Squash Soup". First of all, the next time I make this I will be buying pre-peeled, cubed butternut squash instead of trying to peel and cube my own butternut squash. What a pain in the arse THAT was. I think it probably took me a good twenty minutes just to peel the squash. It's very oddly shaped in case you aren't familiar with it. Thank god I have awesome knives or it would've taken me forever to cube it. So after peeling it, I took the peelings and stuffed them down the garbage disposal, turned on the water and flipped the switch. BIG MISTAKE. My disposal is now clogged and I'm waiting on the plumber to get here. I tried EVERYTHING...plungers, Drano, resetting the disposal, using that little "key" thing, sticking my hand in the drain, trying to clear it...nothing worked. SIGH. SO...I had to call a plumber. I'm guessing that it's going to cost around $100-$150 and that's why this soup is called the $150 Butternut Squash Soup. Next time it will probably only cost me about $10.

Anyway, the soup was freaking delicious. I really could not stop eating it. But I had to because my roommate is making a yummy dinner tonight. So I didn't want to be too full for that. Here's a pic of the finished product.
It's very savory, very filling and kind of sweet. I kept adding salt trying to cut the sweetness until I got it to my liking. You'll just have to do the same. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

3 to 4 pounds butternut squash, peeled and seeded

2 yellow onions

2 McIntosh apples, peeled and cored

2 tbsp olive oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 to 4 cup chicken stock (I used veggie stock of course)

1/2 tsp good curry powder (I used WAY more curry powder. Just a preference)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Cut the butternut squash, onions and apples into 1-inch cubes. Place them on a sheet pan and toss them with the olive oil, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Divide the squash mixture between 2 sheet pans and spread in a single layer. Roast for 35 to 45 minutes, tossing occasionally, until very tender.

3. Meanwhile, heat the chicken stock to a simmer. When the vegetables are done, put them through a food mill with the medium blade. (Alternatively you can place the roasted vegetables in batches in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add some of the chicken stock and coarsely puree.) When all of the vegetables are processed, place them in a large pot and add enough chicken stock to make a thick soup. Add the curry powder, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Taste for seasonings to be sure there's enough salt and pepper to bring out the curry flavor. Reheat and serve hot. YUM!

Pasta with Walnuts in Sage Butter Sauce (Vegan)

So last night I decided, on a total whim, that I wanted something with sage butter sauce. I saw something in a magazine with that in the title earlier that day and couldn't stop thinking about it. So I started googling "sage butter sauce recipes" and came up with a total keeper. I found it here It sounded delicious so I knew I just HAD to try it.

I actually used whole wheat angel hair pasta and Earth Balance Buttery Spread as opposed to the Fettuccine and stick butter. But I'm sure it tasted just the same.

Excuse the poor picture quality. My roomie, with the mad photography skills, was MIA when the pasta was ready for it's close-up.

This was a perfect Fall dish. It was earthy tasting and savory. Even though my roomie was MIA with her camera, I still made enough for her because I'm sweet like that. She loved it. I will definitely be making this again...especially on a brisk fall night.

My BFF and Her Awesome Jewelry

So I need to take a moment to talk about my BFF, Cassandra. We worked together for about seven years but didn't really start hanging out until about two years ago. Weird, I know. We didn't really work in the same department but we knew who each other was and always said hello in passing. But it wasn't until we both got promotions in the same department and another office that made us start talking.

That first day we both showed up in the same lobby at the same time and didn't know anyone except each other. So of course, we bonded. And the rest, as they say, is history. Now we're roommates!

Anyway, she has a great blog and an awesome Etsy shop where she sells really GROOVY jewelry that she makes all by her little self. :) She makes some really cool stuff. And everything she ships out goes in these cute little packages...so pretty that you don't want to throw them away. Maybe, one day when I win the lottery, I will hire her to be my personal jewelry maker!

Want to know the benefits of living with a jewelry maker? She gives me stuff for free every now and then! WHOO HOO!

Saturday Took a Turn For the Unexpected!

Last night my roommate and I decided to stay in and chill. Well I bought a whole...um..bushel (?) of basil at the farmers market that morning for a whopping three dollars! So we decided to make margherita pizza for dinner. So out the door we went and headed towards the grocery store to buy the rest of the ingredients.

Somehow between my front door and the grocery store, my roommate decided she wanted to get her nose pierced. She had been thinking about it for a long time and finally made up her mind to do it as we were driving to the grocery store. So, we made a pit stop at Psycho Tattoo which is less than a mile from my house.

Once we were inside the store, I started thinking about a tattoo that I've been wanting for probably about the last 13 years. The more I thought about it, as I was watching her fill out her piercing paperwork, the more I decided I wanted to finally get my tattoo. So I did it! It's very small, in fact I can cover the whole thing with the tip of my thumb. It's on the top of my foot just under my big toe. I LOVE it! Don't ask me why the purple man in the moon. It doesn't have any significance. It's just something I've always wanted.

Isn't it cute? And no my foot isn't dirty. It's just ink that stained my foot. It should come off in the next day or so. But I can't believe the tattoo artist was able to get so much detail in to such a small tattoo! He did a great job!

We finally made it to the grocery store after that and bought our ingredients for the pizza. It was delicious by the way. We used lots of my fresh basil, slices of mozzarella cheese (which melt much better on a pizza than shredded cheese, and yeah I know, NOT vegan), some sliced cherry tomatoes, some red pepper flakes and a whole wheat Boboli crust. We took a "before" picture of the pizza but forgot to take an "after" picture. I think we were so excited to eat it that we just forgot! All in all, it was a very fun, unexpected Saturday night!

Quinoa Salad

I decided to try a recipe I've had forever tonight. I can't remember where I found it but it was really good. I had a little taste to make sure it was seasoned well enough but I didn't actually eat it for dinner because it's supposed to be eaten cold. It will be good and chilled tomorrow for lunch. YUM!

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 carrot, diced

1 celery stalk, diced

6 cherry tomatoes, quartered

1 scallion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

Juice from 1/2 lemon

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Dash cayenne pepper

Dash cumin

1. Boil quinoa in a saucepan with 1.5 cups of water until all water is absorbed. Set aside until cool.

2. Combine all chopped vegetables and drained beans, along with the lemon juice, oil, vinegar and spices. Fluff the quinoa and toss with the vegetable mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste and chill for at least an hour. It's also good with a little hot sauce!

* I used the juice of a whole lemon just because I love lemon and I thought that made it much better.

Holy mother of all sweet potato dishes!!

Last night I decided it was CUBAN THURSDAY! Thursdays are usually champagne Thursdays but I was out so...I had to drink wine. Darn. :) I'm in love with Alicia Silverstone's book The Kind Diet and I've been making all sorts of yummy stuff from it.

I've been dying to make one of the recipes in particular...Cuban-Style Roasted Sweet Potatoes. I picked up some sweet potatoes from my local farmers market last weekend just so I could make it. While thinking about the potato recipe, I thought, hmm...what else can I make to go along with the Cuban theme? I had a can of black beans in the cabinet, a red onion and some AWESOME salsa, made right here in the ATL that I also got from the farmers market. I also had some collard greens, which really doesn't go with the theme but right then and there I knew I had my dinner planned. My roomie had a chicken breast in place of the greens but I did make her squeeze some lime juice on it to go with the Cuban theme.

Don't those sweet potatoes look freaking delicious? They were!! My roommate and I couldn't stop "mmm-ing" every time we took a bite. Here is the recipe:

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and quartered (about 3 lbs)

4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Fine sea salt to taste

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 large garlic clove, minced

1 tbsp fresh lime juice

1 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Heat the oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Place the sweet potatoes in a medium bowl, toss with 2 tbsp of the oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Spread the potatoes on the prepared baking sheet and roast until they can easily be pierced with a knife, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes or so.

Transfer the potatoes to a large bowl, and toss with the garlic, lime juice, parsley and remaining 2 tbsps of oil. (I used a little more lime juice than the recipe called for because I love lime and it totally made it for me.) Adjust the seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Here's the recipe for the yummy beans:

1(15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained

Purple onion, diced (use as much as you like)
1/3 cup of your favorite salsa

Saute the onions until soft. Put the beans in a saucepan and add the onions. Then add the salsa and stir. Just heat until warm. I sprinkled on some fresh cilantro right before I served it. If you're in Atlanta, go to your local farmers market and see if you can find Zocala Salsa. There are different flavors. My favorite and the one I used in this recipe is Mole Rojo. It's by far my new favorite salsa and it's spicy. (Ready for the cornball comment?) It's like a party on your tongue! Ok, I'll stop.

I had all that with my side of collard greens that I sauteed with some Olive oil and even threw in some red pepper flakes to make it go with the theme. Maybe next time I'll have a shot of tequila instead of wine with this dinner. Ick...ewww...no. I'll stick with the wine. :)

Tracy's Fried Rice

So today I was at work and I was super busy. But as I was working I kept thinking about the container full of raw veggies I had in the fridge. I chopped up a bunch of veggies last weekend and I just haven't eaten much of them. There was broccoli, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, red onion, cucumbers, carrots, and celery. I thought to myself, geez I need to do something with those veggies or they're going to go bad! So I started doing some internet research on what to do with leftover veggies. I came across a recipe for fried rice. I altered it a little bit..ok, I altered it A LOT. It's pretty much my own creation. But it was SO good that I had to post. I even gave myself a couple of pats on the back. My dog was looking at me like I was crazy while I was doing that by the way. Anyway...here's the recipe:

Tracy's Fried Rice

1 cup to 1 1/2 cups of finely diced veggies (I used red onion, broccoli, cauliflower, celery and carrots)

1 pkg Near East Long Grain & Wild Rice from Whole Foods

( I wanted to use brown rice but this is what I had on hand.)

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup vegetable stock

2-3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

Salt & pepper

1. Cook the rice according to the package's directions. (1 tbsp of olive oil and 1 3/4 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Add the rice and the seasoning. Bring to a boil again. Reduce heat to low and simmer until tender or water has boiled out.)

2. Chop up all the veggies really fine. Put 1-2 tbsp of oil in a skillet then add the veggies. Then add about 1/2 cup of vegetable stock. Cook on medium heat for about 5-6 minutes or until tender.

3. Cook the rice for about 20 minutes.

4. After adding the rice to the veggies, add about 2-3 tbsp of low sodium soy sauce and some fine sea salt and cracked pepper to taste.

5. Cover and let simmer for 3-5 minutes or until the rice is tender to your liking.

6. Serve & enjoy!

It was YUMMY. My roommate was upstairs and came down and said, "What the heck are you cooking? It smells delicious!" So I let her taste and she loved it. I'm not normally a big rice fan but I hadn't had any "grains" today so I figured I needed to get some in. :)

Hope you like it!

Trying Vegan...once again!

Earlier this week, I decided to read Alicia Silverstones The Kind Diet (for the 3rd time). I decided last night to try the whole vegan thing, AGAIN. I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY want to go full vegan but I have several things that keep holding me back. Here they are (in no particular order):

1. Cheese...mmm, yummy, gooey, oozy cheese. I know it's bad. It's fattening, it clogs and congests you and not to mention what the poor cow has to go through for me to have it. I gave up the butter and the milk a couple of years ago. Ice cream...I don't eat very much of it as it is but when I do, it ain't vegan! But I can get over that. Rice Dream makes some awesome ice cream. But cheese? It's my drug of choice. :)

2. I'm the only one I know out of all my family and friends who is vegetarian. I've been a vegetarian for the last 20 years. So I've kind of gotten used to being the picky eater at restaurants. I've also gotten used to people asking me, "if you don't eat meat, what do you eat?" (rolling my eyes). But being vegan brings even more questions, groans and crazy looks from my friends. My family is pretty compensating since they are used to the way I eat. They have no problem with anything I eat and are usually willing to try anything I make. But my friends...that's another story. Most will try stuff but they don't generally like it if it's something they've never heard of. Then the ones that want to go out for lunch or happy hour always feel as though they have to go where I want to go, which isn't true. I've been vegetarian for 20 years. I can ALWAYS find something on any menu to eat.

3. Lastly, if there is a new vegetarian or even vegan restaurant I want to try, well...I have to go by myself, which I don't like doing. If there is some new food or ingredient I want to try, I have to research it and go hunting for it myself, then figure out how to cook it myself. If I want fresh, organic, locally grown produce I have to look for the closest farmers markets and trek through them alone on the weekends. Boo-hoo.

Maybe I'm just being a lazy procrastinator. I don't know. But I'm really going to try it again and hopefully introduce some new foods to my palate. I'm stuck on your pretty standard veggies, fruits, grains and beans. I follow several vegan blogs and I always see the yummy stuff they make and want to try it. I guess if I had a friend that was also vegan, it would be much more fun. Maybe I'll post an ad on Craig's List!! "Looking for vegan friends to go shopping at farmers markets with!" Just kidding...sorta. ;)

Wish me luck!

Vegas & roommates

Wow...it's been awhile since I last posted. As much as I love to write, I don't know why I don't post more often.

I just got back from Vegas last week. We had a great time. It was practically my first time there. The real first time was more like a drive-thru. I got to see tons of stuff this time. I went with my current roommate Jessica. We stayed in an awesome suite at the Venetian. It was really nice...although the hallways were so long, it freaked me out a little when there was no one else in them. They seriously looked like the hallways from The Shining. I kept waiting for those two creepy twin girls to pop out! Maybe I had been drinking too much. I'm not a big gambler but I did play about $12 worth. I won $103 with one pull of the handle on a twenty five cent Monopoly slot machine. But then I spent $30 of it trying to win more. Basically I came home with $60. But that's fine with me. At least I didn't come home in the hole.

Speaking of my roommate, she is moving out at the end of this month. She moved in back in January because she broke up with her boyfriend. Well...they got back together so she's moving back in with him. Now my other friend Cassandra is moving in with me and she's bringing her cute little weiner...weiner dog, that is. Penny the Dachshund will be joining my little Oscar. YAY! So he will have someone to play with now. I will miss Banana Bread Jess but Candied Carrot Cassandra will be fun as a roommate too. Don't ask me to explain the nicknames. Cass & Jess know what they mean! :)

Cheers for now!

Vegas and Lime...random, I know

First of all, WHOA! It's been a long time since my last post. I have no excuse I guess. I haven't been on the computer for much of anything lately. I have one month to go until my Vegas vacation so I've really been concentrating on eating better and working out more than anything this last month. I did lose 8lbs last month. Of course, with this past Memorial Day holiday and all the BBQ's, I think I gained a couple of pounds back. No worries though! I'm really stepping it up in June. I was only working out about 3 times a week last month. This month I'm adding another 2 days to that. I was also only eating super healthy five out of seven days in May. With one month left to go I will be eating super healthy seven out of seven days this month! Which means, no drinking. Ugh...I think that's harder than the eating healthy thing. Is that bad? :)

I just made a really yummy salad for lunch. I would've taken a picture but it was nothing special, just romaine lettuce and all my favorite chopped up veggies. I'm not a big lettuce fan so my salads tend to be tons of chopped up veggies with just a bit of lettuce thrown in. But I found the yummiest dressing! It's SO good and perfect for summer salads. It's Newman's Own Light Lime Vinaigrette. Holy YUM! I love lime anything so I think it's my new favorite dressing. I also sprinkled on some Mrs. Dash Mediterranean Herb seasoning. Wow! That salad was really flavorful! I'm thinking about making a cold pasta salad with the dressing and seasoning or maybe marinating some shrimp in it. It was delish!

One hour

AAAAHHH!! It's too early for me to be up right now. This week has kinda sucked. I've worked 7-4 for the last 11 years and suddenly my boss decided that no one could work before 8 anymore. So I'm working 8-5 and I've had to change everything around and I'm amazed at how much of a difference one little hour can make.

I'm waking up before the alarm goes off, having way too much time in the morning (hence this blog at 6am), eating breakfast later so 1pm keeps rolling around and I realize I'm still not hungry but I need to get some lunch! My dog is all confused because usually I leave for work and he hangs with my roomie until she leaves and puts him in his kennel. Now I'm putting him in his kennel and I can tell he's confused every time I do it because I'm never the one to put him in there! I hate going to the gym now because getting there at 4:45 is fine but getting there at 5:45 is like walking into a crowded singles bar on steroids. Lastly, I'm eating dinner too late because by the time I'm hungry it's like 8pm! SIGH. Hopefully by Monday, my body will have adjusted and I can function normally again.

Epiphany

Well I finally have my voice back! Thank you lord. I was really starting to get frustrated. I've worked from home every day this week and honestly, I can't wait to go back to the office on Monday. I'm a little stir-crazy right now. Really the only person I've seen this whole week is my roommate and the employees at Whole Foods. (Actually I did get to see my B-I-L and nephew today.)

Anyway, I had an epiphany this week. As I've said before, I'm a vegetarian. I would be a strict vegan if it weren't so dang hard and expensive! So the more research I did on vegetarianism and veganism, the more I became sort of an animal rights activist. Now I don't mean I was breaking into labs and stealing mice or anything. The whole animal perspective was what made me become a vegetarian to begin with. But now, a lot of my research has steered me into a different path...kinda like a fork in my vegetarian research road. I'm starting to turn into more of a food activist instead of an animal rights activist. I've been reading all these books and watching these documentaries and even tv shows...Jamie Olivers Food Revolution is a great one. Stop eating processed food people!!! It's SO horrible for you! (I know I've blogged about this once before.) I'm just really irritated by our government when it comes to America's health. They know this food is horrible but they don't care! I just wish I could open all of my family and friends eyes to the problem with the SAD (Standard American Diet and yes it is sad!)

I've been harping on my family for years now to change their diets. My mom FINALLY listened after her best friend was enlightened and changed her ways of eating. Now I've finally got someone else on board.

So I don't want to preach anymore than I already have. But if any of my friends or family have any questions, thoughts, complaints (lol) or anything about all of this, I KNOW you guys know where to come!

Talking Is Underrated

Saturday I was outside for awhile, probably more than I should have been considering the pollen index was 5,836. FYI, anything over 120 is extremely high. What can I say? It was a moment of insanity. Over the last 7 0r 8 years, I've developed pretty bad allergies to pollen. Anyway, later Sat night, around 9pm I guess, I started getting very hoarse. Ya know at first I was thinking "Hey, I sound kinda seexxxy. Oh yay-ah". Then as the night progressed, I got a little more hoarse and I started thinking, "Wow, I'm really losing my voice! Hee hee!" Then Monday I woke up and started looking online for dry erase board necklaces. That's right. I have NO voice. It's completely gone and it REALLY SUCKS. There's nothing blissful about not being able to speak (which had me contemplating my blog name and whether I should change it).

I didn't realize how often you actually speak nor did I realize how much I LIKE to speak! I've been working from home so I can avoid using my voice at all. But I went to Whole Foods on my lunch break today and had to explain to a random employee, the cashier and my bagger that I had no voice and couldn't speak. By the time I got in my car and was on my way home, my throat was hurting. But I bought this tea made by Yogi. It's called Honey Lemon Throat Comfort. The person that referred it said it works wonders. It has slippery elm bark in it which is supposed to really help with throat irritation. It did soothe my throat quite a bit. I resisted the temptation to add a hundred packets of Stevia which really would've made it taste waaaay better. You're supposed to drink it twice a day. Blech.

I guess before I go to bed tonight I'll chug another mug down and then pray that it has miracle healing powers and I'll be able to talk in the morning.

Wish me luck!

Bruschetta

I went to a friends birthday party last night and everyone was supposed to bring an appetizer. As much as I love bruschetta, I've never really made it myself. But I made it last night and every last bit was gobbled up within an hour. It was SO yummy and definitely something I will be making again. Here is the recipe:

6 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 small red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1 clove garlic, whole
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 1/4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp fresh cracked pepper
2 Italian baguettes, sliced (about 3/4 inch thick slices)


Whisk together diced garlic, salt & pepper, vinegar & basil.
Slowly drizzle in olive oil. Add the tomatoes and onions to the mixture.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes so the flavors can blend together. Brush both sides of the bread with more olive oil and rub them down with the whole clove of garlic. Broil on low and flip so both sides are golden brown. Top with bruschetta mixture and serve.

Obsessed Part 2

Ok, I think I was having a meltdown yesterday when I wrote my last blog. Hee hee. I was working from home and had way too much time to be doing research (more time than I should admit). I'm over it today...although I still think Twinkies are gross.

I'm going to Vegas in July and I want to lose a few pounds so starting this week I'll be hitting the gym hard and getting my fruits, veggies & water in as often as possible. Any yummy vegetarian recipes anyone has, please pass them on! I could really motivate myself by posting a "before" picture on here. But I'm not that crazy!

Wish me luck! :)

Obsessed

So...I have a new obsession. It's not really a good one either. I mean I guess it is in some aspects. I'm obsessed with what I put in my body. I don't mean like, do I choose fat free dressing over regular dressing. I mean I'm not putting anything in my body unless I make it myself. I've been doing a lot of reading and research over the last two or three years and from what I've read, I'm just disgusted with our government. I don't really want to go into the politics side of it because you would be sitting here reading this all night. But basically, I'm just trying to not eat any processed food. It's very hard. We live in such a fast-paced, convenience driven society that I understand why people grab fast food. But if most people knew what I knew, they probably wouldn't want to eat processed food anymore.

I have Blockbuster Online and I'm currently waiting to receive Fast Food Nation, King of Corn, Food Inc., and some other crazy documentary that would bore most people but I'm nerdish-ly excited to get. I've read Skinny Bitch and Vegan Freak and The Kind Diet (by Alicia Silverstone) and countless others. It's really scary how people will eat something that was chemically engineered in lab and not think twice about it. Or...like one of my closest friends, when I tried to tell her that the Twinkie she was eating did not have one single recognizable food product in it, she got mad and told me that not everyone wants to hear that kind of stuff. Um..ok, keep eating rat poison and small doses of ingredients that they use in rocket fuel. Your body...your call (and your ignorance). (They do not put rat poison or rocket fuel in Twinkies, that I'm aware of...just using that as an example as those ingredients are in some other common American foods).

If I told you something you were eating was engineered in a lab and several of the ingredients in it were statistically shown to cause cancer, heart disease, autism in young children and several other diseases, would you get mad at me and keep eating it? Or would you be completely shocked and vow to TRY to cut it out of your diet as much as possible? Call me crazy or obsessed, but I want to know what I'm putting in my body.

Maybe that's just me though.

What's This Blog All About Anyway?

I realized today that I haven't really explained what this blog is supposed to be about so I thought I would do that. It's mostly about anything that makes me blissfully happy!

I will probably post lots of recipes because I love to cook and I love to eat. I am a vegetarian so they will all be yummy vegetarian recipes. There may be some vegan recipes here and there too. I also love to write and I love to read. So I will probably post some books that I love. I'm also writing my own story so maybe one day soon I will post the first chapter. I'd love to get some feedback! I'll also be writing about places I've traveled or would like to travel. The rest will be about whatever else is making me happy at that moment...clothes, my dog Oscar, my friends, wine, lamp shades (ha ha), ANYTHING!

Stay tuned...

Shin splints kinda suck

Well, this has been an unusually cold winter. I mean, 10 degrees is NOT normal for Atlanta during any part of the year. So I've been desperately trying to get through this winter and make it to spring because when I say I love winter, I mean I love it because 30 degrees means I can make a fire and eat soup. At 10 degrees I want to set the house on fire and soak my body in some soup. Not to mention the fact that I was always in a bad mood and wanting to scream at everyone constantly but I couldn't because my face was so tight and dry that it hurt.

So FINALLY mother nature redeemed herself! This past weekend was GORGEOUS. It was sunny and about 60 degrees. I decided Saturday morning to go for a walk. It was such a nice walk that I did it Sunday morning too. I went to the Big Creek Greenway in Alpharetta and between the two days, I walked a total of 8.2 miles! It was exhilarating! It was energizing! It was motivating! It was...BLISSFUL! It was just me and my iPod both days and honestly, I kinda liked it like that. I thought I would be scared walking alone but there were so many people out running, walking, biking, roller blading, and riding these weird scooter things (that I've never seen before) that I felt completely safe. I was never alone on that trail for more than a full minute. So I enjoyed it so much that I've decided to make it my new Saturday/Sunday morning habit. But I have to take it a little slower next time I guess. I got the WORST shin splints! I was hobbling around work today like a little old lady. Yeah, shin splints kinda suck!

Orzo Stuffed Peppers

Geez, I've been getting beat up for not posting for awhile, especially considering I wanted to do this so bad and I've only posted once. I've been busy! Gimme a break. :)

Anyway, I just thought I would share this recipe that I made for dinner the other night. I was tired of the same old meals so I started looking for something I had never had before. I know stuffed peppers aren't all that "different" but I had never had them. I found the recipe on Giada De Laurentiis' website. (I love her!) I tweaked it a little bit to my taste. I used all red peppers because they're my favorite. I also used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth because I'm vegetarian. There's a bit of prep work for this recipe but it's not too bad and was totally worth it in the end. It made my house smell SO good too. Here ya go!



INGREDIENTS:
1 (28oz) can diced Italian tomatoes
2 zucchini, grated
1/2 cups chopped fresh mint leaves (I used basil instead because basil is AWESOME)
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano, plus more for sprinkling
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
4 cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
1 1/2 cups orzo pasta
6 sweet bell peppers (red, yellow or orange)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat over to 400 degrees F.

Pour the tomatoes into a large bowl. Add the zucchini, mint, cheese, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Stir to combine.

Meanwhile, bring the broth to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the orzo and cook for 4 minutes. The orzo should only be partially cooked. Use a fine mesh sieve to transfer the orzo to the large bowl with the other vegetables, Stir the orzo into the vegetable mix to combine. Transfer the warm broth to a 3 quart baking dish.

Slice the tops off the peppers and remove all ribs and seeds. Cut a very thin slice from the base to help the peppers stand up.

Place the peppers in the baking dish with the warm chicken broth. Spoon the orzo mixture into the peppers. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil, sprinkle the top of each pepper with cheese and continue baking until the cheese is golden, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and carefully transfer the orzo stuffed pepper to a serving plate. Eat up!


Cook Time: 1 hour / Level: Intermediate / Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Tip #1: I halved the recipe and it still made almost 4 whole peppers.
Tip #2: Use real Pecorino Romano cheese if you can. It's SO SO SO much better than that pre-grated packaged stuff!

A First!

Hi! I'm so excited to finally start blogging! My friend Cassandra has been on me for weeks to start my own blog and finally, with her help, here I am! I love to write so I don't know why I haven't started a blog before now really. But I can't wait to meet some new people doing this and learn the dos and dont's of blogging. I think my next post will be about tomorrow nights dinner...stuffed red peppers. Mmmm.